Addressing machines, or addressorgaphs



Oct. 6, 1959 J. H. sTn-:Low 2,907,271

, ADDRESSING MACHINES, OR ADDRESSOGRAPHS Filed Svept. 9, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 jim, 010.-

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Oct. 6,1959 J.H.sT|ELow l 2,907,271

ADDREssING MACHINES, 0R ADDREssoGRAPHs Filed Sept. 9, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 all 2,907,271 ADDRESSING MACHEJES, R ADDRESSOGRAPHS John H. Stielow, Hamburg-Langenhorn, Germany Application September 9, 1957, Serial No. 682,764 Claims priority, application Germany September 19, 1956 i 3 claims. (ci. :m1- 123) vThe invention relates to improvements in addressing machines, or addressographs, and more particularly to improvements in machines of the kind indicated which are manually operated.

In known addressographs of the manually operated type the printing roller is generally connected with a hand lever Vthrough a linkage system including spring means in such a way that the spring force and thereby also the pressure of the roller against the stencil card varies during the movement of the roller over said card. This produces cards with uneven printing and another disadvantage is that prolonged operation of such a machine is tiresome. The present invention eliminates these and other disadvantages.

Accordingly, an important object of the invention is toprovid'ea machine of the kind indicated in which the use of springs in the linkage system connecting the operating handle with the' printing roller is eliminated.

Another object of the invention is to provide a machine of the kind indicated in which the path of movement of the printing roller is positively controlled by means of cam-like guide means.

A further object of the invention is to provide a machine of the kind indicated in which the printing roller is positively guided over the ink pad with light pressure and over the stencil card with proper and unvarying pressure.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 substantially is a vertical cross-section on line I-I of Fig. 3 of an embodiment of the invention,

Fig. 2 is an elevational view of a detail, and

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the same embodiment as Fig. 1.

In the embodiment shown, a member 2, substantially shaped as an inverted U, is pivotally connected near the free ends of the legs of the inverted U with a base 1. The pivot bears the reference mark 2b in Fig. l.` By means of another pivot 2c at the opposite end of each leg of the inverted U, said leg is pivotally connected with a link 4. A handle 3 is secured to the web of the inverted U-member at the middle of said web.

A printing roller 5 is rotatably supported by the two links 4 in circumferential engagement with a distributor roller 6 that is also rotatably supported by said links 4. The shaft 5a of the printing roller 5 extends beyond the links 4 at both ends and carries on each extension a cam follower 7 rotatably mounted on said extension of the shaft 5a. A transverse pin 7a is secured to the free end portion of each of the links 4 and extends outwardly therefrom for a purpose that will presently be explained.

Outside each end of the member 2 a side wall 18 is secured to the base 1. The upper part of the front edge portion of each side wall 18 is bent inwards to form a concavely curved cam surface 8 for the corresponding cam follower 7, and said 9am surface 8 has a horizontal United States Patent 2,907,271 Patented Oct.v 6, 1959 straight front extension 8a at a distance above the base 1. A reinforcement element 19 is secured to the top surface of the extension 8a and provided with a plurality of vertical holes for selective accommodation of a pin 8c in a position to be engaged by the pin 7a, as will presently be explained. Y

An ink pad 10 is secured to the free arm of a slightly liexible, susbtantially L-shaped member 20 that is secured to the base 1 by means of screws 21. The arrangement is such as to cause the printing roller 5 to roll over the ink pad 10 when `the links 4 are -moved with the cam followers 7 in engagement with the cam surface 8. Y

Adjacent each lside edge of the base 1 a spring blade 13 is secured to said base 1 by suitable means, such as screws 22, and said spring blade 13 extends forwardly above the base 1. To the front end portions of the spring' blades 13 a stencil holder 11 is secured at 23. The forward portion of the card holder 11 is-in the shape of a rectangularv frame extending horizontally across the base 1 in close proximity thereto, the front transverse member of said frame being designated 11a in Fig. 1. Along each side edge of said frame a blade spring 14 Vextends which has its rear end secured tothe card holder 11 at 14b while, atkits forward end, said blade spring is prof' .vided with a downwardly directed projection 14a which forms a front abutment surface for a card 12 of rela` tivelysmall front to rear dimension, while a larger card would extend below the raised projections 14a to the frontframemember 11a. i J `1 Pins 15 are mounted in holes extending through the base 1 somewhat rearwardly of the frame part of the card holder 11 and the lower end of each of said pins is secured to a blade spring 16 iixedly mounted on the bottom side of the base 1 within a bottom recess 24 in said base 1. A rod 17 is pivotally supported in the base 1 within said recess 24 and extends transversely of the base 1 below said pins 15 and springs 16. The rod 17 is provided with a crank-like portion 17a below each of said springs 16 and also with a handle member 17b disposed on the outside of the base 1. Accordingly, the pins 15 will normally be held by the springs 16 in a low position with the top ends of the pins 15 flush with or below the top surface 25 of the base 1. When the rod 17 is turned so as to dispose the portions 17a upwardly the pins 15 are forced upwardly against the action of the springs 16 to make said pins 15 project above the surface 25. If desired, more than one transverse row In operation, when an envelope, a sheet, or the like is to be printed, said article is pushed in below the card holder 11 from the front end of the machine. relatively large dimension, said article may be pushed all way back until it abuts the wall 26 at the rear edge of the surface 25 in which case the pins 15 should be in their downwardly retracted position so as not to interfere with the insertion of said article. If said article is of relatively small dimension, the pins 15 are moved to their raised position to form a rear abutment for the article.

With the stencil card 12 placed in the card holder 11 with the front edge of said card against the frame member 11a or against the projections 14a, depending upon the size of said card, the handle 3 is moved forwardly and downwardly as indicated by the arrow 3', thereby causing the printing roller 5 to roll downwardly in engagement with the ink pad 10 and the distributor roller 6. This movement is guided by the engagement of the cam followers 7 with the cam surfaces 8 and the movement continues forwardly with the cam followers 7 in engagement with the cam surfaces 8a until the pins 7a engage the pins 8c. The height of the cam surface 8a above the surface 25 of the base 1 is such as to cause the printing roller to press the card 12 and card holder 11 downwardly with a uniform pressure during this hor-y izontal phase of the movement, whereby the article on; the surface 25 is smoothly and evenly imprinted with the matter on the stencil card. The pressure of -the roller S on the card 12 is unchanged during the return movement of the printing roller 5.

vIt is apparent, therefore, that I have provided a simple and inexpensive machine for the purnose indicated which is eieient, easy to handle, and reliable in operation and which produces imprints of excellent quality.

` While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, many modifications thereof may be made by a person skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention, and it is intended toprotect by Letters Patent all forms of the invention falling within the scope of the following` claims.

What I claim is.: Y l

1. In an addressing machine and the like, a substantially horizontal base having a top surface for supporting an article to be printed, means for supporting a stencl card above said top surface of the base, an ink pad mounted on said base, a printing roller, link means rotatably supporting said printing roller, a hand lever pivotally secured to said base, means pivotally securing said link means to said hand lever at a point thereof spaced from the pivotal connection between the hand lever and the base, cam surface means secured to said base and having a first portion substantially parallel with the ink surface of said ink pad and contiguous with a second Y f r'anotan portion parallel with the top surface of said base, and cam follower means on said link means for running engagement with said cam surface means during pivotal movement of said hand lever, whereby said printing roller is caused by pivotal movement of said hand lever to roll across said ink pad with slight pressure thereon and to roll across said stencil card with a uniform pressure determined by the distance of said second portion of the cam surface means from the stencil card.

2. The addressing machine as set forth in claim l, including a pair of side walls secured to said base and extending upwardly therefrom at a distance from the ends of said printing roller, a liange on each of said side walls projecting in the direction towards the opposite side wall and forming said cam surface means, a pivot pin extending from each end of said printing roller through bearing apertures in said link means, and a wheel rotatably mounted on each of said pivot pins to form said cam follower means cooperating with said cam surface means.

3. The addressing machine as set forth in claim 2, in which the portion of said flange that is parallel with Said base is provided with a longitudinal row of holes extending through said flange, and a pin selectively inserb able through said holes to extend into the path of said wheel and thereby limit the range of movement thereof.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNTED STATES PATENTS 1,509,091 

